


A bowl of frozen dolts (Frosen Steel Week prompts 2020)

by Twilightdusk



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F, Frosen Steel Week (RWBY), One Shot Collection, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:49:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27191983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Twilightdusk/pseuds/Twilightdusk
Summary: Collection of one-shots for Frosen Steel week
Relationships: Penny Polendina/Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee
Comments: 16
Kudos: 64





	1. Beacon Days

Weiss stretched her arms over her head as she took a short break from studying the textbook open on her desk. She smirked to herself a little as she completed the gesture, back before she started school here at Beacon, if anyone caught her making such an unladylike notion she'd be in for a scolding from her father, but she'd gradually come to realize that nobody she was sharing her dorm with cared about those kinds of formalities. Not that their approval mattered at the moment, since she was alone in the room. It was a Saturday afternoon after all, no classes meant students were free to do whatever they wanted during the day, and while Weiss was content to stay inside studying, her teammates had their own plans. Yang was having a day out in Vale with some of her friends from her previous school, Blake was most likely holed up in the library, and Ruby...Weiss sighed gently as her lips turned down into a slight frown. Ruby was off "hanging out" somewhere with that Penny girl. Again. 

It's not like Weiss had any real room to complain or anything, it's not like they had made plans as a team or as partners, and students were free to use this time how they wanted to, but Ruby had increasingly been spending her free days with that odd Atlesian girl. And it didn't stop on spending idle days with her either, she'd been brought up increasingly in conversation. A point of comparison for weapon strength here, an anecdote about dust usage there, it was like Ruby's every waking moment was becoming more and more centered on the girl, and it was getting increasingly under Weiss' skin. Not because Weiss was personally invested of course, but she was Ruby's partner, she should have a better idea of what she's focusing on and why, and if her partner continues to be distracted with such fancies it could prove detrimental to her studies! Even if Ruby's grades had only been doing better recently if anything, that must be due to her own efforts shining through, not because of any positive influence from that other girl.

Weiss was so lost in her thoughts that she took a moment to notice the dorm room door opening, before she could react, Ruby had already rushed in and towards the closet, leaving a trail of ethereal flower petals in her wake. "Ruby? What's the rush, is everything OK?"

Ruby jumped in place as she heard Weiss' voice, her eyes wide with surprise as she turned to face her. "Weiss!? Wh-what are you doing here?" She chuckled and rubbed the back of her head, averting her gaze when Weiss simply responded with a steady glare. "Right dumb question...I-I'll just be a minute sorry, just needed to grab something real quick." 

"Uh huh..." Weiss held her gaze as she casually closed the book on her desk. "Well if it's something you're in such a hurry for I'm sure I can help, you do tend to be a bit disorganized after all." She smirked as she stood from her desk and approached the closet Ruby was standing dumbfounded in front of. "So, what's the rush?"

Ruby gulped audibly as her eyes darted from side to side in thought. Luckily she spotted something out of the corner of them and dove for a corner of the closet. "I-I found it! You don't need to worry Weiss, I'll just be heading right off then see you later!" Ruby plastered a fake grin on her face as she turned around, only for Weiss to be directly in front of her, blocking her path back to the door.

Weiss looked down at Ruby's arms and raised an eyebrow. "Your toolbox? That's an odd thing to be in such a hurry for..." She furrowed her brow for a moment before she let out a soft chuckle. "Oh I get it, something happened with your darling Crescent Rose didn't it?" Weiss took Ruby's nervous expression as a yes. "Alright then, let's get going."

Ruby's eyes were shifting side to side again as Weiss spoke, only to widen at those last words. "H-Huh? No that's not necessary, e-everything's totally under control Weiss, you don't need to come or anything."

Weiss raised an eyebrow and exaggeratedly placed her hand on her hip. "Do you remember when you offered to clean out the dust cylinders on Myrtenaster for me and nearly blew up that table in the maintenance room? If something's gotten you so panicked over a weapon you need supervision."

"She's not a weapon!" Ruby blurted out with a glare that made Weiss take a step back. Ruby blinked and flinched back herself before looking to the side. "I mean, not just a weapon, I mean er, y-you know how much she means to me!" Ruby's cheeks were suddenly tinged a deep red and Weiss could only find herself rolling her eyes. "B-besides, Penny's there to talk me through things so-"

"Penny?" It was Weiss' turn to blurt out, her voice almost a growl with how deeply the word passed her lips. "Oh I see, so you're trusting your mysterious new friend with maintaining your little _darling_ but you won't let your own partner near it." Ruby flinched back from her as Weiss realized her breathing had deepened and her hands had clenched into fists. She huffed and turned towards the door, beginning to walk. "Well like it or not, if you're using the maintenance building it won't be hard to find what room you've reserved. I'm taking a look at whatever damage you managed to cause for future reference whether you like it or not."

"W-Weiss wait!" Ruby gulped and quickly followed Weiss out of the dorm room. She made a few attempts to talk Weiss down from marching towards the maintenance building, but after those were met with silence and an attempt to physically block her path was met with being jumped over with the help of some glyphs, Ruby resigned herself to nervously walking by her side. 

As one of the world's premier huntsman academies, Beacon had plenty of buildings dedicated to specialized tasks, one of which was a structure about the side of the library sectioned out into a number of reinforced rooms where individuals or teams could perform maintenance and testing on their weapons without needing to worry about causing any permanent damage if anything went wrong. Weiss and Ruby walked into the building together, and then Weiss quietly followed Ruby to one of the rooms towards the back, where her scroll undid the lock and let her inside. The room was on the smaller side, meant mostly for individual use, it had a sturdy table at the center that Ruby's weapon was currently resting on, a few drawers with basic supplies behind it, and a miniature range off to the side intended more for making test shots than for proper target practice. 

Ruby chuckled nervously as she walked inside and set her toolbox down on the table. She turned around to face Weiss, holding her hands behind her back. "S-see? Everything's fine, everything's totally under control, so-"

"Salutations Ruby! I am so happy that you have returned. I was starting to wonder if something had happened to delay you." Penny spoke up from the side of the room, causing Ruby to stand up straight while Weiss' gaze was drawn towards her voice. Penny was standing by the inner wall of the room, currently blocked from Weiss' sight by said wall and by the door as she started to step into the room. Penny paused as she noticed the footsteps. "Ruby? Is someone with you?" The girl's usually even tone of voice somehow had a tinge of nervousness to it.

"Yes, as a matter of fact. I trust there's no issue with Ruby's _partner_ being here to help take a look?" Weiss still couldn't see Penny directly, but she shot a glare in her direction regardless before stepping forward towards the table, taking a quick look at Ruby's weapon. It looked...exactly the same as the last time Weiss took a look at it. In fact if Ruby hadn't been so panicked a few minutes ago, Weiss would think it hadn't even been used in the past day. "So what exactly is the...problem?" Weiss blinked as she turned her head back towards Ruby, who was now standing by the door, which was still wide open. No, it had been opened even wider now, and based on the ginger hairs Weiss could see, Penny was currently hiding behind a combination of it and Ruby's own body.

Ruby had her least convincing grin on as she looked towards Weiss. "N-Nothing! there's no problem at all. I was just going to um...er..." She glanced back towards Penny for a moment before straightening back out. "I was going to show off Crescent Rose to Penny! y-you'd think the rooms here would have all the right wrenches and stuff but I-I had to go grab my own to have the right one to take it apart is all. S-so that's all the boring, uninteresting stuff happening here, you can just head right back out if you want."

Weiss blinked slowly as she crossed her arms. She knew that Ruby was a terrible liar, but also a stubborn one. Fortunately, they both knew someone who was even worse at lying, thanks to some of the cutesy stories Ruby had shared with the team. "Is that right Penny? Ruby was just going to show you her weapon and that's all?"

The ginger hair behind Ruby seemed to jump a little as Penny hesitated to respond. "That's...that's positively correct... _hic_!" Despite the force of conviction in the girl's tone, she couldn't stop that telltale hiccup from escaping her lips, and even Ruby couldn't help but wince at the sound.

"I see..." Weiss continued before clearing her throat. "So would either of you care to tell me why you're hiding Penny behind the door for this entirely normal, routine showing off?"

Ruby grimaced and poked her fingers together as she tried to think of an excuse. Before she could, Penny cleared her throat behind her. "I must apologize Weiss, but I'm currently...a bit of a mess, as some might put it. I would rather you not see me right now."

Weiss raised an eyebrow at that. She had just proven that Penny was a terrible liar, so what she was saying should be true but... "A mess...and you're OK with Ruby seeing you as 'a mess' but not myself...." She could feel her eyes narrowing and her hands balling into fists again as the implications of such a statement clicked together through her mind, particularly how nervous Ruby was acting in hiding her.

Ruby gulped again and raised her hands up in front of herself as she noticed Weiss' reaction. "W-Weiss really, i-it's nothing bad you don't have to get upset."

"Nothing _bad_!?" Weiss snapped and nearly snarled as she stepped towards Ruby, her glare living up to the nickname Ice Queen. "Oh I'd say some Atlas schooled... _harlot_ disheveling herself in front of my partner is plenty bad, and if you think otherwise then I have to seriously question your judgment." She made a few more steps towards Ruby, who reacted by backing up more against Penny. "Ruby, I'm going to give you three seconds to move out of my way." She lifted her hand and held up three fingers. "Three....Two...."

"Stop!"

Weiss blinked at the interruption, turning her head more fully to Penny. She was close enough to see her face now, her eyes were closed in a pained expression. "Please stop this. I cannot handle seeing the two of you so angry because of me."

Weiss blinked in surprise while Ruby bit her lip and turned towards the ginger girl. "B-But Penny, I promised I wouldn't-"

"Then you will not Ruby, I will not let you break a promise either." Penny interrupted her friend and took a long breath before placing a hand on the open doorway and slowly pushing it closed. With the barrier removed, Weiss was able to see more of Penny's body, and was able to confirm that despite the conclusions she was jumping to, her clothing was still on. But despite a nervous Ruby attempting to flail her arms as a shield for a few more seconds, Weiss' gaze fell upon that outstretched arm that had pushed the door closed. The girl's arm wasn't completely straightened out, it was bent at the elbow still, but at an unusual angle, as though her bone was popped out of place. But the explanation was around the elbow itself, a large patch of the girl's skin was stripped away, revealing not bloody bone, but dented chrome metal.

Ruby whimpered nervously as Weiss just stared blankly at Penny's arm before she continued. "Weiss...I am not a real..." She glanced at Ruby and mimed clearing her throat. "Not a _normal_ girl. I am a machine, an incredibly sophisticated machine, but regardless I am not...human." She let out a sigh, Weiss's mind was still trying to process everything but spared a brief thought to wonder if she actually needed to breathe or if the sigh was entirely symbolic. "Ruby found out some time ago, and I made her promise not to share my secret with you. And then today while we were walking in the woods, something happened which left me damaged, as you can see." She glanced nervously at her arm before holding it out towards Weiss, as though offering to let her look at it. "I couldn't just go back to the Atlas base like this without them panicking over it, and I couldn't exactly go to the nurse's office here either. So Ruby offered to help me repair it herself, she just needed to grab some of her tools to help with the job."

Penny walked towards the table and sat down by it, laying her arm down onto the solid surface. Ruby glanced at Weiss nervously before looking away and rushing over to Penny's side, busying herself by taking some delicate tools out of her box and starting to examine Penny's injury with them.

Weiss sighed and pulled up a seat on the other side of the table, letting the sounds of maintenance tools fill the awkward silence as she worked through her thoughts. "So...You were spending time with Ruby because she knew your secret, and she was spending that time with you because she's the only one who could and not because..." She looked away from the pair awkwardly for a moment before looking back. "And needing to keep all of this a secret, that's the reason you made Ruby promise to keep quiet and why she was acting so...weird about it?"

Penny hesitated, and so did Ruby based on how the tool noises stopped. "...Yes. That is the reason.... _hic_ " Penny tried to cover her mouth with her hands, but winced in pain as the one being repaired didn't move properly.

"Ah! Careful Penny, we're still working on this. I-I think I have it figured out though, just let me..." She bit her lip in concentration as she threw her focus into the task.

Weiss didn't have the same amount of distraction from the tell and held a hand to her forehead, massaging it gently. "Penny...I do want to apologize for jumping to conclusions and barging in on you like I did, but it would help it I could get a clear picture of things. Is there some other reason you made Ruby promise that then?"

Penny's cheeks flushed red, Weiss idly wondered again if there was some mechanical purpose to that or if she was just mimicking human behaviors, and she looked away nervously. "I...was afraid that if you found out, you might hate me."

Weiss raised an eyebrow at that. "Hate you? Why would I..." Weiss' voice trailed off as she realized her earlier outburst would make it rather difficult to claim that she couldn't hate Penny. Much as she was loathe to admit it, she had found her impression of the girl souring the more of Ruby's time she was monopolizing... "I mean, why would you even care if I hated you?"

Penny bit her lip as she fidgeted in her seat. "Well because...that's because...Th-there is a perfectly logical reason... _hic_!"

Ruby suddenly groaned and loudly set her tools down, an annoyed expression on her face as she looked up towards Weiss. "Because she has a crush on you Weiss! Every time we hang out together she can't stop asking how you are or what I think you think of her, she didn't want to make a bad impression!" She groaned again in frustration and flopped forward onto the table, arms outstretched and her cheek resting against the surface. "And here I went messing all that up today..."

Penny's cheeks remained flushed as she sat up straight, while Weiss' first instinct was to stand up and reach out towards Ruby, putting a hand on her shoulder "Y-you didn't do anything wrong you dolt! I'm the one who was just jumping to conclusions and...you said...crush?" Weiss' cheeks tinted to match Penny's as her mind caught up on processing everything. Her gaze slowly turned towards the ginger girl, who was distracting herself by flexing her arm and testing the repairs Ruby had finished. "Is that...true?"

Penny quietly nodded her head as she attempted to stare a hole into the wall of the room, and Ruby remained flopped on the table, turning her head to face it more directly and hide her own expression. Weiss stood back and looked between the two, trying to sort out in her head what she thought of them, and what she made of the events of the day so far. After a long awkward silence she clapped her hands together in front of herself, and with practiced ease formed a smile on her face as the noise drew the other's attentions to her. "Well, I must admit I'm not entirely used to the social customs around Vale but I hear that when a friend ruins another's day, it's customary to treat them to a meal. Why don't we take a trip down to Vale and find something nice?"

Penny blinked in surprise and hesitated before waving a hand in front of her face "I-I could not possibly ask you to do such a thing Weiss! After all it's because of my secret that this situation happened, if anything I-"

"No that's not true!" Ruby cut in, a blush on her face as well for some reason. "I'm the one who bungled keeping your secret after I promised, I should find something to-"

"Alright that's enough out of both of you." Weiss stated firmly, letting out a small sigh before pointing a finger towards Penny. "You were just trying to enjoy yourself while keeping an extremely important secret. And you," her finger shifted towards Ruby, "You were just trying to keep said important secret as best you could. Neither of you did anything wrong, and I don't want you to just wallow in pity about it." She sighed, closed her eyes, and crossed her arms. "So...allow me to apologize. And now that everything's out in the open..." She opened one eye, looking towards Penny. "How about we try to start again on the right foot? The three of us."

Penny blinked several times before smiling brightly and clapping her hands together, similar to the gesture Weiss had made. "I think that would be most sensational."


	2. Atlas Nights

Weiss smiled and held back a yawn as she finally returned to Atlas Academy after the day's work. She had thought she'd take something more low-key today instead of the usual Grimm hunts, but it turns out low risk assignments don't mean low effort. She and that construction crew were both grateful that her glyphs made transporting construction supplies up and down the in progress tower a lot quicker, but the name of the game was getting as much done in the day as they could so it was nearly sunset by the time Weiss' aura was exhausted enough to make trying to help more of a hindrance than an asset. So here she was, reported in and free for what was left of the day until it was time to go to sleep and take on some other assignment in the morning. And when it came to spending her limited free time, her feet were carrying her to a particular room in the facility before she even gave it much thought.

"...Hold still Penny, I'm almost done with this~" Ruby's voice echoed through the room as Weiss stepped inside. It was an odd combination of a workshop and an office, as Weiss entered there was a bed to her right with some medical exam looking supplies around it, to her left after a stretch of empty space was a desk and a few shelves of file containers. Straight ahead of her though was an odd contraption built into the wall, almost like a series of half-braced claws with enough space for someone to stand inside of, and right now Penny Polendina was standing inside of it, with Ruby typing away at a computer to her right.

"Really Ruby, I told you I'm fine, you don't have to run through all my diagnostics every time I-" Penny's thoughts were interrupted as she looked towards the door and spotted Weiss. She blinked in surprise before blushing slightly and smiling incredibly widely. "Weiss~ It is good to see you have returned- ow!" Penny attempted to rush towards Weiss, but a suddenly appearing hard-light barrier kept her inside the contraption, until Ruby clicked a few more buttons and the machine shut down. Weiss chuckled at the display, and the next thing she knew both of the other girls were holding her in a tight, shared embrace.

"There you are Weiss~" Ruby spoke up as she let go of the hug and took a small step back, that usual bright smile on her face. "Everything go alright with your mission today? Usually you're back before us."

Penny smirked slightly at Ruby as she continued holding Weiss, "I _told_ you she would be fine Ruby, there was never anything to worry about." 

Ruby fidgeted with her fingers and looked away from them nervously "I-I know that, but I'm allowed to worry over my girlfriends a little, that's...normal right?" 

Weiss looked between the two of them. Penny's expression softened back to neutral before frowning a little in concern. Back in Beacon all of her expressions were always more exaggerated, it seemed part of her upgrades involved subtler emotive cues. It made her easier to read in some ways but it emphasized even more than her taller stature or longer hair that she had changed in the time she spent alone in Atlas. And Ruby...that nervous, worried expression really didn't suit her, but Weiss understood all too well what was making her act that way.

Weiss cleared her throat as she collected her thoughts "Well then, I do hope our energetic dolt didn't spend too much time worrying over you while she was worrying over me." She smirked a little herself as she turned her attention back to Penny, seeing Ruby flinch a bit guiltily out of the corner of her eye.

Penny hummed in thought for a moment, going back to her usual bright smile. "Once we got back from today's mission, Ruby brought me here to check my systems. And then she checked them again! And again..." Penny's tone of voice was so sincere that either she was telling the complete truth, or Weiss had underestimated how much better at sarcasm she had gotten.

In either case, the statement prompted Ruby to blush a very deep red in embarrassment and flail her arms around in front of herself "Th-That's! I only checked things over twice at most! You took a hit during our mission today, I just wanted to make sure..." Ruby bit her lip to stop herself and looked off to the side. "Sorry, I guess I really was just worrying too much huh?"

"Oh Ruby, it's not like I mind. Before you arrived I would often get the same treatment from my Father after all, and now you're here to keep me safe out in the field too. I couldn't possibly be happier with things." Penny smiled with that bright, beaming smile of hers, it was difficult to stay upset in the presence of such optimism. In the back of her mind, Weiss wondered if that personality was part of her design in the first place, if she had been intended to do what she's doing now, to protect and calm the people during Grimm attacks...but even if that were the case, it didn't make her any less genuine, and it reminded her so much of how Ruby was back in their Beacon days.

Weiss was pulled out of her thoughts by the clapping of two hands together, Ruby was still blushing as she drew attention to herself. "A-anyway! Since we're all here and we've all had successful days, why don't we relax with something?"

"That sounds lovely," Weiss smiled, groaning a little as she stretched out her arms. "Something that doesn't involve running around the academy preferably? I never realized how much energy could be spent _lifting_ things all day."

Ruby's face broke into a grin as she ran over to the wall of the room "Not to worry my darling Weiss, we're not going anywhere today~" After pressing a few buttons, the open space in the middle of the room suddenly started to shift. A rectangular section of the floor rose to around chest height in the air, and some other sections rose up around it, but not quite as high. When all was said and done, it looked like a long table with seats positioned around it, and beneath the table itself was a collection of colorful cardboard boxes, some of which looked to be in much worse shape than the others. "Penny and I found it while we were poking around the other day, looks like her dad has friends over sometimes too."

Weiss blinked a few times in surprise while Penny simply clapped her hands together excitedly. "I suppose I was wondering why the room seemed so empty," Weiss spoke as she approached the table, "I figured Professor Polendina just didn't spend much time in here, he has that other office down in Mantle after all."

Penny nodded her head "I had been thinking the same thing, but in my scans of this room it seemed as though there was an extra space beneath the floor there. I hadn't been able to find the mechanism to open it, but once I told Ruby about it she practically scoured the walls for switches."

Ruby patted her chest and lifted her head into the air "Yes yes, praise me more~"

Weiss rolled her eyes as she sat down one one of the platforms, resting her arms on the table surface. "Snooping around an old man's office isn't exactly praiseworthy, even if he has given us permission to meet up in here."

Ruby huffed in feigned offense as she rushed over to the table, bending over beneath it to dig through the boxes. "Anywaaaay, check it out!" She grinned as she pulled up a thin box and set it down on the table. Penny and Weiss both leaned over to read the title on the cover, 'Remnant: The Game'

"Oh how delightful!" Penny clapped her hands together excitedly. "Do you want the three of us to play together?" 

Weiss started at the box with an uncertain expression as various memories came to her mind, memories involving Ruby and Yang dramatically pointing fingers at each other while a short, redheaded robot girl took her turns with a scary amount of efficiency. "Are you...sure this is a good idea Ruby?"

"Of course it's a good idea~ Three girlfriends huddled together in a room playing their favorite board game together, what could be better?" It was Ruby's turn to grin with that disarming, genuine brightness that Weiss just couldn't say no to, or help smiling at herself.

"Fine, let's get this set up then. But I'm not playing as Vacuo this time."

* * *

It turned out that Weiss' luck with the game was no better as Mistral than it had been as Vacuo, and a few turns after she had been knocked out of the game she excused herself from her more intense girlfriends. She returned with a tray of coffee and snacks and found the atmosphere in the room just as intense as when she left it, but in a different way. Based on the color of the pieces on the board, Ruby's Vale was dominating the game, just a few white Atlas soldiers left defending the capital stood between her and victory. But instead of excitement, Ruby's face was fraught with nerves as she looked between her sizable hand of cards, and across from her, Penny seemed more....annoyed than anything, her eyebrows creased sharply towards her eyes and her arms crossed in front of her chest, not even bothering to look at her hand.

"Ruby Rose!" Penny eventually spoke up, maintaining her pose as she did. "The great and noble soldiers of Atlas stand ready for your attack, now make it!"

Ruby gulped and chuckled nervously as she glanced between her cards and the game board. "J-Just a minute Penny, I-I'm just trying to figure out the right action. In fact, maybe I should just pass again..."

Weiss looked at the board more closely as she approached and set the tray down. Even to her it was beyond obvious that the game was over, Ruby had Penny's forces outnumbered by at least three to one and even if there were some cards that could even those odds, Ruby's larger hand of them meant she was sure to have a counter of her own. Weiss let out a heavy sigh. "I was afraid something like this might happen..." She reached out and rested her hand on Ruby's shoulder, making her jump in surprise as she turned to look up at her.

"W-Weiss! When did you get back?" Ruby tried to smile, but it only made her nervousness more obvious.

Weiss rolled her eyes a little. "Just now, I had hopped this round would be over by the time I got back, what have I missed?"

"What you missed," Penny responded in the most annoyed tone Weiss had ever heard out of the girl's mouth, "was Ruby making the most reckless attack after the most reckless attack possible, and the dice constantly landing in her favor despite that!" Penny glared down at the collection of dice scattered across the game board like they were her sworn enemies, all while Ruby flinched backwards in her seat.

"I-I'm sorry Penny," Ruby started with a nervous chuckle, "Can't control how the dice fall in a game like this huh?"

"No, but that's not why I'm annoyed." Penny let out a huff, another new one for Weiss to witness, as she pointed her gaze back towards Ruby. "I'm annoyed because you weren't playing like this at all against Weiss. Against her you were considering things carefully and making sure you had the advantage when you attacked. Once she was out and you were battling against me," Penny paused and narrowed her eyes, "It's almost as if you wanted to give yourself the worst odds possible."

Ruby chuckled and looked pointedly off to the side, like the professor's desk was the most interesting thing in the room. "Y-You're imaining things Penny, I just needed to take more risks against you since you're a better player and all."

"I see..." Penny maintained her gaze, "If that is the case Ruby, then why are you upset about this victory instead of excited? Your plan worked as you hoped it would, didn't it?"

Ruby flinched back in her seat again while Weiss rolled her eyes and rubbed her shoulder. "Come on Ruby, it's all just a game isn't it? I didn't get....too upset when I was knocked out right?"

"Y-Yea but I..." Ruby let out an exhausted sigh as she flopped forward onto the table, displacing a few game pieces in the process "Alright I admit it, I was trying to lose to Penny."

Penny's lips curled into a smile for a brief moment before they went back to a frown. She reached over the table to pat Ruby's other shoulder. "I thought something was up. But Ruby, why would you do something like that? I thought you enjoyed winning this game."

"I-I do! But..." Ruby sighed again, lifting herself back up into her seat as she forced herself to look up at Penny. "You know I get all into it with this game, and when I started picturing overthrowing Penny, taking her out of the game...I started imagining...."

Ruby trailed off, but the air in the room hang heavy as both of her girlfriends knew what she was referring to. After a few tense moments, Penny rose up from her chair and walked around the table, embracing Ruby from the side "It's OK Ruby. I'm fine, I'm here and I'm better than ever right? Beating me in some silly board game isn't going to change that."

Weiss smiled and leaned in to hug Ruby from the other side. "And I'm not going anywhere again either, not for any longer than it takes to find some cookies for you anyway."

Ruby visibly struggled to keep herself moped out on the table, but the warm hugs and mention of cookies were too much and she eventually lifted her head with a sheepish grin on her face. "You ah, really found some cookies then?"

Weiss rolled her eyes once more, but maintained a warm smile. "Why don't you two enjoy the refreshments while I see if there's a less...aggressive game here for us to play." 


	3. Maiden, Glyphs, and Silver Eyes

Weiss took a deep breath as she held Myrtenaster up in front of her. After thinking over her plan for a few moments, her eyes shot open and her rapier swept in front of her at the same time. A line of white glyphs appeared on the ground in front of her, ending in a black one. She dashed along the path, building up speed with each symbol she passed before the final one launched her straight up into the air. She twisted her body to face a series of targets on the ground, with another sweeping motion a glyph appeared above each of them, and as she descended towards the ground, an icicle shot out from each glyph, hitting the targets dead center.

As Weiss landed on the ground and flourished her weapon, her focus was distracted with a clapping and cheering coming from nearby. "Woo! Go Weiss that was so cool!" 

Weiss rolled her eyes as she clipped her weapon to her waist and turned to Ruby. "You don't have to be so impressed every time you know, it's just my semblance."

Ruby rolled her eyes in return at that. " _Just_ your semblance, as if your semblance isn't like, the coolest one in Remnant!" She grinned as she held her hands up into the air excitedly. 

Weiss waved a hand dismissively, but couldn't help but grin a little at the praise. "Please Ruby, it's not any more special than your petals or Blake's shadow clones. Though I _have_ dedicated years of practice to refining it."

"Oh come on, all I can do is zip around quickly. Yours can make platforms and shoot ice out and launch you into the air and all kinds of stuff! Remember when you helped me run up a cliff with it when I was dragging a Nevermore behind me? And that's not to mention your summoning, that'd be a crazy awesome semblance just on it's own! Your semblance is like _magic_ compared to mine!" Ruby was grinning more and her eyes sparkled as she spoke.

Weiss was finally flustered by all the praise, turning her head away to hide a blush creeping onto her cheeks. "You can cut out all the gushing already, most of that is just applying dust not really my semblance itself. Besides, if you want to talk about magic..." 

Weiss trailed off as her gaze shifted a short distance away, Ruby turned her head as well as she started to feel a strong gust of wind from that direction. Penny was slowly lifting herself off the ground in the center of a small tornado, eyes closed but wreathed in green flames. She smiled as she watched their girlfriend practicing focusing her newfound power, all while Ruby gazed in open awe. Eventually she touched back down to the ground and the winds dissipated, her eyes opening with a smile as those flames vanished. "Oh Ruby, Weiss~ Are you done with your practice already?"

Ruby blinked and rubbed the back of her head sheepishly as she smiled "N-Not really, I may have gotten a little distracted by you two. Your powers are both just way too cool you know?"

Penny nodded in agreement. "I have to agree. Weiss' glyphs and summoning are so fascinating to witness." She hummed gently and smiled at Ruby. "But I do have to say, I think your powers are even more fascinating Ruby."

Ruby blinked in surprise and stepped back a bit, even while Weiss hummed and nodded her head. "I think the Maiden Powers are more impressive overall but, you shouldn't forget that you have your own unusual ability Ruby."

Ruby chuckled and rubbed the back of her head again while she turned away. "Come on you two, it's not like the silver eyes are all that."

"Not all that!?" Penny gasped out in surprise. "But Ruby, what about when you froze that Leviathan in place? Not to mention the dragon back at Beacon! I hardly think I'd be able to do _anything_ like that even with these new powers."

"I concur." Weiss stepped forward and placed a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "I won't have either of my impressive girlfriends selling themselves short alright?"

Ruby nodded and smiled brightly again "Alright, since my lovely girlfriend is telling me to anyway" She grinned more as she felt Penny hug against her side.

"I think both of you are quite impressive as well~" Penny stated in that sing-song tone of hers.

Ruby giggled herself and sighed happily, closing her eyes for a moment. The three of them had a long way to go and a lot to get done, but they each had two incredible, powerful girlfriends.


	4. Meeting the Parents

Ruby squirmed and fidgeted in her seat, tugging at the neck of her dress as she looked around the room. She wasn't used to wearing this stuffy outfit, it had been left untouched back in Patch since the Beacon dance. She smiled and giggled a little thinking about that, it was like a lifetime ago after all of her adventures, and it brought back memories of how beautiful and cute her girlfriends looked respectively.

"Glad one of us is enjoying themselves so far..." Ruby looked to her side at her father, who was looking equally uncomfortable in a suit and tie, making a similar gesture of pulling at the side of it where he sat. The two of them were the first to arrive at the fancy Atlesian restaurant. Ruby could swear the receptionist was giving them some funny looks, but after identifying themselves they were led to a private room, with a circular table set for six. A strong looking set of double doors separated it from the main dining hall, which was already far from rowdy, and prevented much of any noise from leaking in. So Ruby and her father were seated in an awkward silence as they waited for the rest of their party to arrive.

"Well, I wouldn't say I'm enjoying myself exactly. Just...thinking of some school memories." Ruby replied, trying to keep up the small talk at least. "Did you and Mom have any fun memories of the school dance?" 

Taiyang chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, back at that point I was more just with Raven to be honest. I can't say I disapprove of your relationship status but your old man was more of a 'one at a time' kind of polygamist." He flashed Ruby an awkward smile which just made her chuckle nervously and look back towards the door. 

"Y-yea I guess I should have figured." She sighed as the awkward silence fell through the room again, and attempted to break it up by drumming her fingers against the table. "Hope the others get here soon, I didn't think we were _that_ early. I kind of hope Penny gets here first instead of-" 

Just before Ruby could say something she'd instantly regret, the doors to the room opened with a dramatic bang, and an aging white-haired man in an expensive looking suit and with a self-important posture stepped into the room. He glanced to the left and the right before looking towards the table, and glaring towards the two sitting at it. "And what _exactly_ are some riff-raff doing in here? This room is _supposed_ to be reserved for my daughter and her _fiance_."

Ruby laughed nervously and waved her hand towards him. "H-Hi Mister Schnee. We've....seen each other....I think?" Ruby sunk into her chair slightly even as she fought to maintain a grin, wracking her brain to remember if she'd ever been properly introduced to Weiss' father previously. 

Jacques maintained his glare as she sized Ruby up and down, the gaze softening just slightly once he recognized her. "Ah yes, the Rose girl, Weiss' little...partner back at Beacon."

Taiyang leaned closer to Ruby and whispered into her ear. "He...does know your relationship right?" Ruby could only shrug in response as she continued grinning fragilely towards the man's glare. 

Jacques eventually scoffed and broke the stare, crossing his arms and pacing along the wall. "In any case you two should vacate at once. I can hardly allow myself and my daughter to be seen in the presence of such...tacky dressers."

That comment broke Taiyang's silence as he barked out a laugh. "Tacky dressers? That's rich coming from someone wearing a clip-on tie." 

Jacques stopped mid step and almost coughed in his shock at that statement, holding a hand up to his neck in what he clearly thought was a subtle attempt to hide said tie. "Why I _never_! Don't you know who you're talking to!? I could have you thrown out of here in an instant, I could have you banned from ever buying dust again! I could-"

"Father." The simple word interrupted his tirade and brought everyone's attention to Weiss, who was suddenly standing at his side. Ruby couldn't help but sigh dreamily as she admired her dress. It was a blue gradient dress that started deep at the top and gradually faded into white at the bottom, with white dots resembling snowflakes dotting the design starting at around her waist. Long sleeves wrapped around her arms, but the fabric had a gap around her chest framing her modest chest, with a sapphire broach drawing attention right above it. "I _must_ have been imagining something as I entered, because you would never go breaking our agreement within the first _minute_ of our arrival, now would you?"

Jacques coughed into his fist and nervously adjusted his tie as he pointedly looked towards a corner of the room. "O-Of course I wouldn't my darling. I was simply exchanging a few words with this....man." He scoffed as he glanced back toward Taiyang, who at this point was sitting back with his hands behind his head, grinning at the two.

Weiss smiled contently and nodded her head at him before approaching Ruby, taking one of her hands and curtsying low as she kissed it. "Good evening my darling Ruby, I must say that you look wonderful." 

Ruby blushed deeply at the gesture and took a moment to compose herself before responding, grinning down at her bride-to-be. "Good evening my lovely Weiss~ I er, do declare that seeing you is...lovely!" 

Weiss chuckled and rolled her eyes a little as she stood up straight. "The effort is appreciated Ruby, but you can just be yourself..." She glanced over her shoulder towards her father, who was trying his best to look like he didn't care about anyone else in the room as he sat down across from Ruby. "I was just trying to get back at him a little." 

Ruby chuckled nervously herself as she nodded her head. "Yeah I can understand wanting to do that for sure~ You're sure he'll ah, be alright with things?"

Weiss scoffed and rolled her eyes. "If he wants to remain associated with me, which he does, he'll be on his best behavior...while I'm in the room at least." Weiss glanced toward her father a bit nervously while Ruby let out a small chuckle.

"Salutations girlfriends! What are we laughing about today?"

Ruby and Weiss looked up and towards the door to see that their last girlfriend had arrived, and Ruby gasped loudly as she took in the sight. Penny was wearing a pale green dress with short, puffy sleeves that stopped just past her shoulders, and a wavy, frilly skirt bottom starting at her waist and extending down towards the floor. "Penny! I didn't hear you come in, you look so pretty~" Ruby practically jumped up out of her seat to give Penny a hug, getting a sarcastic chuckle out of Weiss as she moved in to join it.

"Hey now, where was that enthusiasm when _I_ entered the room?" Weiss smirked as Ruby's eyes went wide and then looked towards her with an apologetic expression.

"Hey now I told you I can handle myself just fine, you don't need to hurry and scurry over me." The trio's attention was redirected as the door opened again, a very flustered looking waiter hurrying toward the table and removing the chair between where Taiyang and Jacques were seated. Following him was an aging, dark skinned man seated in that bizarre contraption that Ruby settled on calling a spider-chair. A series of mechanical legs carried the seated man towards the table, settling in where the chair had been removed from it before putting on a smile and turning towards Jacques "Let's see, I do believe we've met plenty of times before Mister Schnee..." His smile became a little more genuine as he looked the other way and extended an arm. "But I don't believe we've been introduced. Just call me Pietro, I'm Penny's father." 

Taiyang had been busy staring at Pietro's contraption, but composed himself as that arm was extended, grasping that hand and giving it a polite shake. "Taiyang Xiaolong, at your ah, service. I'm Ruby's father. She's told me a lot about you, in fact I believe I have you to thank for my other daughter's arm?"

Pietro let out a hearty laugh at that, before raising his fist to his mouth as he coughed once. "Oh think nothing of it. It's James you should be thanking for arranging all that anyway."

Ruby smiled towards them, still hugged between her girlfriends as they observed the exchange. "Well, they seem to be getting along at least." 

Penny smiled brightly and nodded her head. "My father gets along well with everyone after all." 

"Glad that's true for one of us at least." Weiss let out a soft chuckle as she pulled herself away from the hug. "Well, shall we be seated then? We have a lovely dinner ahead of us after all." 


	5. Oh, I'm in love...

Penny took a nervous breath of air as she stepped out off of the Atlesian transport ship after it touched down on the Beacon port. A gust of cool wind blew through the evening air, making the short curls of her hair bob and sway. The new dress she was wearing also billowing around, prompting her to pat it down flat with her arms. It wasn't anything fancy, a fact that only served to make Penny more nervous considering the occasion, it was a simple green dress that started as straps above her shoulders and flowed down to about her knees, with a black belt around her waist that helped keep it from blowing up entirely around her in the wind.

"Miss Polendina, are you ready to go?" Penny turned her head to face one of the two Atlas Soldiers providing her escort tonight. Penny felt a strong urge to frown as she considered him, but ultimately forced her usual smile as she nodded her head.

"Yes sir." The guard nodded at the response and began to walk, followed by Penny after a moment of hesitation, and then she was followed by the second guard. She couldn't help but let out a sigh. This was the night of the Beacon school dance, but it felt more like she was a prisoner being led somewhere, same as it felt for her most days. As much as she understood it was to keep her safe, she had hoped that today at least things could go differently.

* * *

"So Penny, are you going to the dance with anyone?" Ruby smiled as she held her hands behind her head. Classes had let out for the day and some determined zipping about the campus had led to her meeting up with Penny near the CCT tower. She nervously eyed the pair of Atlas soldiers standing near the edge of the plaza where the two were seated, but she pushed them out of her mind for now. They seemed content to observe for now and weren't actively getting between her and Penny, that was enough.

Penny tilted her head at the question. "Dance? I'm afraid I'm not sure what you're referring to Ruby."

Ruby blinked and stared at Penny in her own confusion. "Not sure what-? The dance! The Beacon Dance is this weekend, how have you not heard of-" Ruby stopped herself as Penny turned to stare down towards her lap. She played it off with a chuckle before continuing. "I-I mean, it's a...party of sorts that's being held before the Vytal Festival kicks off. Practically everyone's going to be there, it's practically what the Beacon Ballroom exists for. And er well..." Ruby cleared her throat and forced a grin as she rubbed the back of her head again. "U-Usually you're supposed to arrive at the dance with someone so, I guess I was wondering if anyone had asked you already."

Penny continued staring at her lap as she let out a sigh and shook her head. "No, nobody had even let me know about this dance before now. And honestly...I have my doubts about if Mister Ironwood will let me attend something like that. You know how strict he's being with how much I can be outside."

Ruby let out a sigh of her own as she continued rubbing her head. "Y-Yea, I guess you have a point there." The two sat in an awkward silence before Ruby spoke up again. "Well, ah, if you do manage to get out and hang out at it...I'll be there okay?" Penny felt like the goofy smile on her friend's face when she said that would be burned into her memory banks.

* * *

Penny sighed as she stared at the wall of her room. It was the most recent of many sighs, some wistful part of her wanted to say countless, but that wasn't true, with her precise memory she knew that she had sighed precisely seventy two times already that evening. A majority of her sighing was due to trying to imagine the dance Ruby had mentioned, but no such event was part of her databanks, and nothing she could piece together in her imagination seemed to come close to the sort of excitement her friend had implied. None of the guards or neighbors here in the Atlas barracks were answering her questions either, most of them looked at her in surprise and either walked away or pointedly changed topics, Penny suspected that they had been ordered not to let her know anything, and her optimistic side hoped that was a misguided attempt to keep her from being disappointed with not being allowed to go. She had even employed the strategy of keeping her door slightly open in case anyone decided to discuss it in the hallway, but she had had no such luck so far. Even so, she couldn't help but get hopeful all over again as she heard a young female voice speaking after the opening of a door.

"...Well, it was an absolute delight to catch up with you dear sister. But I should probably be heading back now." Penny blinked. She recognized that young female voice. It belonged to Weiss, one of Ruby's friends, the short one with the pretty white hair. And if she was talking to her sister...

"Are you sure you wouldn't like me to walk you back? I really do have the time." This voice was more readily recognized, Specialist Winter Schnee, one of the few people who knew about Penny's secrets and Weiss' older sister. She knew the two were related, but she didn't connect that Weiss might find time to visit her here.

"Really, I can find my way back on my own. It's not like this place is _that_ complicated to navigate."

"hmm.....Alright then. Just make sure you don't spend _too_ much time getting sidetracked."

Weiss sputtered a little. "Me? Get sidetracked? Of course I won't dear sister." After a few nervous chuckles the door to what must be Winter's room was closed, and Weiss began to walk through the hall in the direction of Penny's room. Penny blinked in surprise as those footsteps stopped in front of her door in fact, and then the door opened, revealing Weiss' petite frame, and a smile on her face. "Good, I was hoping this door would be yours. Saves that much more time."

Penny blinked a few more times and looked around her room nervously. At a glance it just seemed like a normal, if unusually undecorated, barracks room. One bed, a desk, and a small closet which was currently hiding several electronics related to Penny's charging and maintenance. Penny forced a nervous smile as she looked back towards her sudden guest. "G-Greetings friend Weiss. What brings you here?"

Weiss glanced over her shoulder and quietly closed the door before pulling off a backpack she had been wearing. "Oh nothing much, and I do wish I could stay for a bit longer but I'm not sure how much lead time Winter is actually going to give me here." 

Penny tilted her head in confusion as Weiss produced two items from her backpack. One was a carefully folded bundle of green cloth, and the other was a novel-sized book. "What are these for Weiss?"

The white haired girl sighed as she left the items on Penny's desk. "Well...Ruby was telling me about how you were unaware of the dance coming up, and how you weren't sure if you'd be able to attend. I figured...I could at least try to pass you a few things to prepare for it."

Penny blinked a few more times as she approached the desk and examined the items. The cloth turned out to be a simple green dress, one she was sure she'd be able to put on on her own. An the other item was a guide to dancing, the length of it padded with various photographs and diagrams. Both of the items were rather simple, and yet, Penny couldn't stop herself from smiling as she turned back towards Weiss. "Oh Weiss! Thank you so much for bringing these to me."

Weiss huffed and pointedly looked away from the girl, but not before she noticed a slight blush on her face. " _Don't_ thank me for this. I still have no idea if you'll be allowed to go, and besides, I was just doing this because Ruby is so bent out of shape about it. Now if you'll excuse me." With that, Weiss opened the door and stepped out down the hallway.

Penny didn't stop smiling as she turned back towards the items and opened up the book. She had a lot to prepare for after all.

* * *

Penny sighed out again into the night air as she remembered those moments, lifting her head as she approached the ballroom. She had managed to get permission to go but this still felt all wrong. She wasn't arriving with Ruby or Weiss, her soldiers were probably going to keep them and anyone else from getting close to her. She sighed one last time as the first guard held the door open for her and she stepped through.

"Penny! You really made it!" "I told you she'd find a way. And I must say Penny you look lovely in that dress." Ruby and Weiss were practically waiting at the door for Penny's arrival, approaching her too quickly for her guards to shoo them away, and then dragging her off towards the center of the crowd. From there the night was a blur. The two of them danced with her, chatted with her about all kinds of things, talked her into trying some of the concoction known as punch. The night was filled with so much smiling and laughter that Penny was afraid her cheeks might fall off, it felt like she could be content for months with the memories made that night.

And somewhere in that moment, staring at Ruby and Weiss' smiling faces, Penny felt that this had to be what love meant.


	6. Confessions

Jaune sighed and fidgeted nervously as he stood in the middle of one of Beacon's outdoor plazas. He was dressed up in a suit and tie, and his tight grip on a bouquet of carefully arranged roses was the only thing keeping him from pulling and fidgeting at it as the heat of the day beat down on him. His gaze shifted towards the trees and bushes to his left. "Are you....sure that all of this is going to work?"

A frustrated groan came out of the bushes, followed by Ruby's head popping up from one of them, her hands gripping two leafy branches held up above her head. "Jaune what part of 'don't talk to us during the mission' did we fail to explain?"

Jaune gulped and snapped his attention back towards the tiled stone path. "R-right sorry. It's just...are you sure Pyrrha is even going to come this way? What if she thinks I'm overdressed, or what if I got the wrong kind of roses?" 

"Jaune Arc." Penny's voice came from a nearby tree in a stern tone before she revealed herself, hanging upside down with her legs held around a branch of the tree and two smaller branches similar to Ruby's held below her head. "We have gone over every detail of today's mission in detail and I can confidently report a 96.28 percent probability of success!"

Jaune glanced to the side just long enough to wonder how Penny's skirt was staying in place before he forced his attention back to the path and took a deep breath. "Right, surefire success. Just got to stick to the plan."

Penny blinked her eyes. "No, I said a 96.28 percent probability, that's not-" Penny's statement was interrupted by Ruby nudging her head with one of her branches.

"What Penny _means_ to say," Ruby continued "Is that there's nothing to be so nervous about. Besides, you're talking to someone who had to confess her feelings to two of the prettiest girls in Beacon, dealing with just one should be child's play." 

"Aww, you think I'm that pretty Ruby?" Penny blushed slightly as she smiled down at her, and then frowned. "Or wait, are you saying that Pyrrha's just as pretty as us...?"

Ruby blushed more deeply and waved her arms around, causing quite a lot of rustling noise. "Th-that's not what I meant at all! Y-you and Weiss are the prettiest for sure!" 

"Ah guys? I think we might be losing focus here?" Jaune cleared his throat, standing up straight again as he started at the corner of a nearby building that Pyrrha could be walking around from at any moment.

* * *

"Are you...sure that this is going to work? I mean, I don't even know if he's interested in me, and what if he's tired after today's classes? And look, s-some clouds are rolling in, maybe it would be better to-"

"Pyrrha." The redhead's fretting was interrupted by Weiss' voice, and the other girl's arms on her shoulders. "We've been over the whole plan. Jaune's waiting for you right over there..." Weiss turned her head to the corner of the building they were standing just behind.

"I...believe you it's just..." Pyrrha sighed as she fidgeted with her hands. She was dressed in a simple, sleeveless red dress and her usual circlet helping keep her slightly messy bangs out of her eyes.

Weiss sighed out and smiled. "Look. Jaune is a complete and utter _dolt_ , and I think I can speak from experience when it comes to confessing and being confessed to by one or two of those." she took her hands back from Pyrrha's shoulders as a soft blush formed on her cheeks and she closed her eyes. "He's exactly the kind of simpleton who's going to be overthinking everything himself and second guessing if he wants to go through with this. So just go on out there and let him say what he's going to say, okay?"

Pyrrha sighed again herself and nodded, a determined look on her face. "Alright Weiss, if you say so." She turned to face the path before hesitating and looking back. "Wish me luck?"

Weiss rolled her eyes and gently pushed Pyrrha forward. "I can just about guarantee that you don't need any."


	7. Combat Skirts

Penny hummed gently to herself as she stood over a pot of brewing coffee. She herself didn't benefit from the caffeine contained within, but she knew that both of her lovely girlfriends enjoyed it, especially when they were tired after a strenuous mission like today's. She closed her eyes and smiled as she envisioned the grateful smiles Weiss and Ruby would no doubt have on their faces when she returns to the room with their drinks.

The sound of someone clearing their throat behind her made Penny turn around. She smiled as she spotted Yang leaning on the doorway into the kitchen. "Hello there Yang. May I assist you with something?"

Yang blushed slightly and reached her robotic hand up to rub the back of her head. "Yes actually, there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about for a while if you don't mind."

Penny blinked and nodded her head. She gave a quick glance to the pot of coffee, but judging by the current progress it should still be some time before it's fully prepared. "Certainly. What is it you wished to talk about?" She smiled as she turned back towards the doorway.

Yang looked away nervously and continued rubbing her head. "Well, how should I put this. You know Ruby and Weiss' combat outfits right? How they have those skirts as part of them?"

Penny nodded her head as she pictured Ruby and Weiss' outfits in her mind. Ruby's outfit with her corset and belt all buckled together to her short red skirt, and Weiss' more elegant, dress-like ensemble with a few belts holding pouches of dust for easy access as a longer, flowing skirt trailed downward. "Why yes, I think Ruby and Weiss have such lovely outfits, and it makes me happy that we share skirts as part of it~" Penny did a quick spin in place, making her own pleated green skirt lift slightly from the motion.

Yang coughed and continued averting her eyes as she continued. "Yes well, not to take that connection away from you three or anything but...do you think you could help me talk them into wearing something else?"

Penny blinked again and frowned a little. "Yang? Why would we need to wear something else?"

Yang took a deep breath and looked at Penny more directly, trying to keep a professional smile on her lips "Well you know how it can get in battle sometimes, don't you think having all that cloth blowing around could be an unnecessary hazard?" 

Penny hummed gently as she reviewed her combat footage, as well as the information she had about the materials their outfits were made out of. "No, I don't believe there should be any such concern Yang. All of our outfits are made of tear and snag resistant materials after all, and they're also designed to be shielded by our aura to prevent any tears that might cause them to become loose or worse."

Yang groaned slightly and looked to the side again before looking back to her. "I-I understand that but, things have been getting more...intense since you've been using your maiden powers more right?"

Penny frowned again and tilted her head in confusion. "I understand that my new abilities are a bit of an unknown, but what do they have to do with Weiss and Ruby's skirts?"

Yang began to blush again as she once again failed to maintain eye contact. "Well you see...your powers tend to kick up a lot of wind right? And that wind has a bit of a tendency to...blow their skirts around, doesn't it?" 

Penny blinked a few more times. "I believe that is true, but I still do not understand the concern Yang. Is there some tactical disadvantage to that movement?"

Yang continued blushing as she rubbed her head again. "W-well, it's just that...when their skirts get blown around like that..." She sighed and slumped her shoulders in defeat as she started to turn around. "Y-you know what, nevermind. I'll just try to talk to them again myself sometime."

With that Yang walked out leaving Penny alone again. The robotic girl shrugged and turned back to the pot of coffee, which still had a few minutes before it was ready to serve. She smiled and hummed to herself as she began to review her footage from the day to pass the time, taking particular note of one moment when Ruby and Weiss were leaping into the air in front of her, and her powers surged out towards and past them. In that moment, Ruby's cape had blown to the side, and both of their skirts had lifted up quite a bit. "Oh yes, I've made quite a good memory today. Thank you for your service combat skirts~"


	8. Free Day: Halloween

A small hand reached up to ring the doorbell of the small house. The path leading up to it was lined with small lights in the shape of cute ghosts, and the door to it had a spider web painted across it. The lights of the house were on, and judging by the sounds of voices coming from it a party was being held inside, and those noises only got louder when the door opened. A dark haired woman with bright silver eyes stood in the doorway, dressed in a long dark robe and a witch's hat, and clutching a bowl of candy.

"Trick or treat!" A trio of young girls stood outside the doorway, holding up their own baskets filled shallowly with assorted candies.

The woman in the doorway smiled brightly down at the girls. "Oh my gosh don't you three look just adorable. Let me see let me see~" 

The woman leaned in to take a closer look at the first girl. "What a bright red hood you have there~ And your basket looks like one of those old fashioned picnic baskets too. You must be Little Red Riding Hood from that story right~?"

The girl grinned and growled playfully, reaching one of her hands to pull back the hood and reveal a pair of wolf ears. "No! I'm the wolf disguised as her, and I'm gonna eat'cha!" 

The woman gasped and flinched backwards in mock fear, a grin staying on her face. "Oh my! Please don't eat me mister wolf, here, take some candy instead~" She giggled as she dropped a few pieces of candy into the girl's basket.

She continued smiling as she turned her attention to the second girl, who was wearing a painted cardboard box around her body, and another one around her head. "A flashy looking frame, some pretty blinking lights on top of it, are you a robot perhaps?"

The girl nodded her head and hesitated for a moment before speaking. "That Is Affirmative. I Am Powered By Candy. Kindly Provide Fuel." She held up a metal pail she was collecting candy in.

The woman nodded her head. "Well we wouldn't want you running empty would we? Here, take some candy then~" She maintained her smile as she dropped some more candy into her pail. 

She then turned her attention to the final girl, who was making an effort to stand up straight and proud. "What a lovely looking dress you have there, and with a tiara on top of it, you must be a royal princess huh?"

The girl gave an exaggerated huff and shook her head "No! My mommy says princesses just sit around all day. I'm a Huntress!" The girl proudly lifted up a 'sword' that appeared to be a tree branch wrapped up in aluminum foil.

The woman in the doorway nodded her head. "Of course of course, and you're going to be the prettiest huntress there ever was~ Pretty huntresses deserve candies too." She reached into her bowl and dropped some pieces into the girl's bucket. "You three run along now, have a happy Halloween~" 

The girls nodded their heads and smiled up in return "Happy Halloween~" They cheerfully said in unison before turning and running off in the direction of the next house.

The woman sighed happily as she watched the girls run along, leaning against the side of the doorway. "Ruby, are you done over there? We're about to cut the cake." The voice jolted the woman upright and prompted her to turn back towards the inside of the house.

"Penny! Weiss! Don't let them start that without me. I was just answering some trick-or-treaters, and I gotta tell you about them, they were just the most adorable ones in the world~" 


End file.
